


Turn Loose the Mermaids

by RainValentine, SassyPastelEren



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Alcohol, Alternate Universe - Historical, Anal Sex, Attempted Sexual Assault, Blowjobs, Drinking, Drowning, Fingering, Levi is not the one who tries to sexually assault Eren, M/M, MalexMale, Mer!Eren, Mermaids, Pirate!Levi, Pirates, Slow Build, Treasure Hunting, Yaoi, drunkin (almost) sex, mermaid au, ships, sneaked kisses
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-09-17
Updated: 2016-08-16
Packaged: 2018-04-21 04:50:53
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 19,713
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4815692
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RainValentine/pseuds/RainValentine, https://archiveofourown.org/users/SassyPastelEren/pseuds/SassyPastelEren
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Captain Levi and his crew were fishing in the ocean on his Carrack ship Maria. It was an average day none to exciting when something abnormal came up with the fishing net... A mermaid by the name of Eren. Levi decides to keep the mermaid but his crew have other thoughts on what to do with him than their captain.<br/>Levi must protect Eren from his men, but can he protect himself from Eren?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Caught in the Net

**Author's Note:**

> this is a story/rp that me and SassyPastelEren are putting together, hope you like it :)  
> ps. Levi is written by RainValentine and Eren is written by SassyPastelEren

The Maria was anchored down in the middle of the ocean, the crew had out their fishing nets and were bustling around the deck cleaning. Levi was inside of the captain's quarters sitting at his desk looking over the map and writing in his daily journal. They had been traveling to one of the Islands off of the coast of the Caribbean, they had stopped here for the day to replenish on their fish and to clean the deck. He hated it when his boat got messy.

Levi heard commotion coming from the deck and got up from his desk to walk out. It must be time for them to bring up the nets. Walking out onto the deck that was just what he saw. Most of his crew men were pulling up the net they had dropped hours before and pulling up their catch. He walked over to the edge to observe the catch. “Alright men, we got a good catch this time, pull her in.”

Once the net hit the deck, fish spilled out… along with a boy who looked to be struggling with the net…

Eren had just seen something he’d never thought he’d see. His mother getting attacked by a shark. In his shock he swam away as his mother had screamed for him to. He had been swimming for what seemed like hours, eyes blurred from the the tears burning his eyes with the salt water. He hadn’t realized he was swimming along with a school of fish until it had been too late, his fluke getting tangled in the net.

Before the brunet could untangle himself, Eren felt the net being pulled up. He was struggling with the net more as it broke the surface of the water, making him gasp harshly at the sudden loss of water. The brunet heard voices clamoring around him and the fish as he struggled to get free, but suddenly stilled when he saw the occupants and owners of the ship and net were humans. Something his kind feared.

The crew slowly all circled around the boy, gazing down at him in disbelief, before their eyes was something they thought was just in tales and songs they they sung. Levi pushed past the crowd to see the boy closer up, to confirm what he was seeing. “God damn you big brutes, move aside!” It was true, the boy in front of him was a mermaid.

After a few moments he shook of his surprise in time to see one of his crew members walk up to the boy. “Well lookie here. pretty little thing ye are.” He reached over to touch the shells in the boys hair. Levi could see the fright in his eyes as he backed away from the intruding hand. “Oh all the things we could do with this one.”

Levi had had enough, he didn’t tolerate this behavior with his men. “That’s enough, sailor. Back off.” He walked over to the boy and knelt down in front of him, looking over the beautiful creature. “Can you speak?” He asked as he reached down to untangle the rope from him.

As the men talked, Eren's eyes frantically looked from each man to the next, trying to find a way out between each but found no way. It wasn’t till one moved to him, his shock making it hard to understand the words he spoke, only flinching and backing away. The brunet was scared from all the stories he’d heard of humans.

His focus though was brought to the hands around his tail and fluke, looking up to see who owned them. It was a man with black hair, styled into an undercut with what seemed to be a funny shaped cloth on his head. When some of his shock wore off, Eren finally registered what he had been asked. His lips felt dry as he tried speaking, only to lick them once to wet them a bit. “Y-yes. I can.” He said in a voice that sounded both harsh and scared.

"Ah, good. Now, what were you doing in my net?” He asked but then turned to one of his men and they spoke to him.

“Cap’n Levi, sir. We could take this mer-person with us, he’d be worth a pretty penny.”

As they were pirates, the idea of getting quite a few gold coins out of the boy sounded very tempting. A few others suggested slimier things, a few even stooping so low as to suggest they all use him to their will while they had him adored just to say they wooed a mermaid.

Levi wouldn’t entertain the last suggestion, but decided they might as well keep him while he thought about what to do with him. He wasn’t going to just thrown him back in and let him swim away. it wasn’t everyday you caught a mermaid in your fishing net. Looking back to a few of his men, “Ready a tub of water in the storage chamber for now, we will keep him there.” He stood up staring down at the boy. “And none of you are to touch him, understood?” He gave the order and walked back to his chambers. “I will be checking in on him shortly, i better not see that any harm has come to him.”

Eren understood every word spoken now, even their suggestions, making his face pale. Though at hearing the one called Levi say his men weren’t to harm him, the mermaid gave a small sigh of relief, knowing it was best not to resist the men as they worked to pick him up from the netting while some of the men gathered the fish that had come in the net as well.

Trying to make picking him up easier, Eren tried relaxing himself as he was carried down to the chamber with a tub already filled with seawater. It was enough for him to stay hydrated, but not enough to make it easy for him to leave. Ignoring the whispering around him, once in the tub, the brunet crossed his arms over his chest, turning away from the men, until he heard the footsteps starting to lead away from him. “Great.. first my mom dies and then i get captured.. The Goddess hates me and I don’t know why.” Eren mumbled to himself.

A couple of hours later, Levi decided to check up on the mermaid they had captured. He swore, if he found a single scratch or bruise on him he would have a crew to strangle. He picked up his journal and quill and walked down below deck.

Walking up to the door that went to the storage room he found two of his men chatting by the door suspiciously. He snuck up to him and heard them talking about sneaking in later that night to play with the new pet. This angered Levi, he didn't like to be disrespected by his crew men, most wouldn't dare. He walked up to the two men. “Care to enlighten me of your discussion of our new ‘pet’?”

The two men looked at him with startled expressions, one of them responding. “N-No sir, we were just about to head back to our cabin sir.”

“Then get your asses to your cabins now before i decide to shoot you for disobeying me!” He hollered at them and they shoved each other past him in the way of the crews quarters. He made sure they had done as they had told before opening the door to the storage room and walked in, closing the door behind him.

Eren flinched a bit as he heard shouting from outside the door, but still kept his back to whoever had entered the room. He was now tired from the shock wearing off and just wanted to be left alone. The brunet bent his tail a little so he could slide a little deeper into the tub, now no longer facing away from the door, but still not looking at his “visitor”. The brunet knew there was one thing he could do to escape, but had figured to save it for the opportune time.

“If you’re here to use me, I will warn you my teeth are sharp.” Eren said, in a huff, hoping to deter whatever this persons motives were. He may be tired, but he’d be damned if he wasn’t going to put up one hell of a fight.

Levi walked in and sat on a chair under the lamp light across the room from the mermaid, he was looking down at his journal, opening it back up to the last page he was on. “I’m not going to touch you, for all I know you could have rabies or something.” He looked up at the boy. “What is your name?”

Eren looked up at the familiar voice, the only one he could trust, at least on this ship. He gave a huff at the accusation of being diseased. “I do not have any illnesses..” The brunet felt the need to clarify, crossing his arms over his chest with another huff. The mermaid looked up again at the man, moving to lean against the edge of the tub. “Eren.. my name is Eren…but what are you doing with that?”

The boy knew he had a knack for curiosity and that it tended to lead to trouble but he figured asking a few questions of his own couldn’t hurt.

Levi watched him and saw the curiosity cross the boys face. “Eren, such a normal name for a mermaid..Tch, your very inquisitive for a captive. ” He looked down at his journal when asked what it was. “It's my ledger, i use it to keep track of the days and the happenings, as well as supplies and cargo.” He looked back at Eren, he had a question of his own that he hadn’t yet gotten the answer to. “What were you doing in my net?”

Eren nodded at the others answer, shrugging at his words. Though when he had asked about why the mermaid was caught in his net, the brunet froze, recalling of the memories that lead to him being caught.

“I-i wasn’t trying to steal your fish.. I swear. I..i was swimming away from…something…” He trailed off, the images of his mother being attacked by a shark still fresh in his mind, eyes watering at the thought. “I didn’t see the net until it was too late and was being pulled up.” He answered, hoping the raven haired man believed him.

Levi looked at him with a confused look. “And what exactly would you have been running away from. Arnt mermaids suppose to be so fierce and dangerous?” He saw how distraught Eren was starting to look, “Oi, Eren.” He didn't really know how to react to that kinda of emotion that showed on the boys face.

“N-no we aren’t. You have us confused with Sirens. They just look like us…” The mermaid said with a sniffle before looking up at Levi with a sigh. “I mean we sing too, but more for enjoyment and to stun a fish for brief moments so we can get away, but it doesn’t work on all fish. Sharks mainly, which is what I was swimming away from. I couldn’t see where I was swimming because I was crying…” Eren said with a huff, looking down at the floor over the edge of the tub. He didn’t expect a human to fully understand how he felt. Sure they experienced loss just like any other creature, but it seemed different, or so the brunet thought.

“So, You were running from-i mean swimming away from a shark and just happened to get caught in my net, in this giant sea.” He wasn't to sure if he believed him but he didn't push the issue farther, he had his fish, and now he had a mermaid. “He set his book down and walked over to the tub and braced himself on the edge. “You know, you should watch where you're going, you could have ended up in a lot worse hands… Not saying that you're in safe hands now.” He reached down and stroked it lightly over his tail. “I have yet to decide what to do with you yet.”

Erens tail flinched away from him, a glare sent Levis way. “Well you would be blinded by tears if you just saw your mother killed in front of you.” The brunet spat out. The mermaid tried curling his tail as far from his hand as possible. “Mind sharing some of your ideas.. since I know what your men want to do to me.”

Levi splashed some water up at him at the first comment. Eren would be surprised how well he knew of that feeling. His mother died in front of him when he was very young. She died from an illness that had spread through the small fishing village. “Watch yourself boy!.” He frowned down at him, it wasn't exactly something he liked being reminded of and tried to keep the hurt flashing over his eyes.

“I don't know, maybe i will sell you to the highest bidder. My men are right, you would earn us a very pretty penny, i might be able to get a new ship. I could only imagine the things those men would do to you, and i wouldn't be there to stop them.” He looked over Eren's body. “I could keep you as my pet maybe.” However, even if he were to keep him as a pet, he wouldn't lay a hand on him, this boy was to precious. He honestly didn't know what to do with him, but he didn't want to get rid of him. What he told him was pretty much just bluffs.

The splash of water surprised the boy, making him flinch. He knew he’d obviously struck a nerve with his first comment. Clearly Levi could relate to him on some level with that reaction, but figured since he was at the mercy of this man and his crew, it would be unwise to make Levi angry.

As Levi spoke, Eren felt his eyes roaming over his body, making him want to cringe. With a sigh, the mermaid figured he’d better get to bargaining with him so things would be made easier for the two of them. “How about this, since you seem to be in need of something of worth, I will stay, but only if you let me leave for a few hours a day? In those few hours, if you can supply me with a decent net, I can go through sunken ships and bring back things of worth for you.” He suggested this as a way to hopefully either appease the other man, or at least help him get ideas on what to do with him. Eren then added another thought. “And if you agree to that, for me to stay here, at least use some of the money you get from what i find to buy or build me a tank or something. This tub is uncomfortable.”

Narrowing his eyes at him, he responded. “And how do i know that once i let you into the water you're not just going to swim away to never been seen again. Did you forget that you would have that advantage. What would you gain in this bargain if i were to agree… Sounds to me that i would be the only one profiting.” He looks down at him suspiciously.

Eren nodded. “I can see why you’d have that concern, but I basically just lost my last remaining family member.. Sure I have friends, but none of them have lost anyone. I want to get away from this part of the ocean. Plus I’ve always wanted to travel farther than where my pod of merfolk live. I’ve never seen the rest of the ocean.” The mermaid said, being sure to not exactly say where his pod lived, trying to keep them safe.

The brunet met Levi’s gaze. “I don’t want to be here, in this part of the ocean, that is anymore, and swimming long distances can be tiring. So really, my getting treasure from sunken ships would be me earning my keep to stay aboard.“ He said, keeping his face calm so that the other might believe him as he tucked a lock of his brunet hair behind a seashell he had pinned into his hair.

Levi continued to gaze down at him, silent for a few moments. “I will think on this. I want to make sure you're not just fibbing to get out of my ship.” He walked back over to his chair and picked up his quill and journal. “I'm going back to my quarters. I’ll return to check on you in the morning. Goodnight Eren, don’t let any of my crewmen sneak in on you.” With that he walked out, closing the door behind him.

Eren nodded as the captain left. He could understand his concern for him Leaving. Though the mermaid knew of a way to make sure Levi knew he could be trusted, but would half to wait till after nightfall. So for now, he sat in his tub, watching the waves from the porthole, splashing his chest with water occasionally to keep his gills long his neck hydrated.

 


	2. A Deal

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eren is hungry and tries to go on a search for food, however, his search doesn't end well. Levi comes to his rescue and the crew is in serious trouble. 
> 
> TW: This chapter does include Sexual Assault, (don't worry, its not between Eren and Levi.)
> 
> Eren written by SassyPastelEren  
> Levi written by RainValentine

Levi sat at his desk and watched as the sun finished setting. It had been a pretty eventful day for a day out at sea. Nothing much usually happened other than a random attack from an English or Spanish Schooner ship. However, they never seemed to learn that their Schooners were no match for his  Carrack ship.

Standing up from his desk, he put his things away and stripped down to just his trousers and slipped into bed. Letting out a sigh, he would have to think of what he was going to do with that mermaid that now resided in his ship's hold.

As night fell, Eren's stomach growled, aching for food after such a long day. He figured most of the crew would be asleep by now and grinned to himself as he pulled himself up to sit on the edge of the tub, fluke dragging across the floor with a wet plopping sound. He looked around one more time, ears listening to make sure no one was near before he relaxed, groaning as the scales on his tale started receding into his skin, revealing two legs.

The mermaid grinned as he flexed his toes, trying to get used to this form once again. It had been months since he shifted and needed to get used to the limbs again. It took Eren a few minutes before he stood, holding the edge of the tub for support as he stretched the limbs, getting used to their weight again, walking in place to get used to the motion.

Once Eren was sure his legs were stable he walked a bit around the cargo hold, not touching anything, just getting used to walking. Once he was sure he could handle the rest of the ship, the brunet used his nose, finding the scent of fish, quietly leaving the cargo hold, looking around to be sure no one was around as he made his way to the stairs, sniffing again to find the scent.

Eren looked for the stairs, internally groaning as he saw the sleeping sailors near the stairs. “Fuck me.” He whispered, trying to quietly maneuver around the sleeping sailors, but didn’t see a small box in front of him, tripping over it with a loud yelp.

A couple of the men heard the sound of someone yelp, a few of the men muttered something about leaving their treasure alone. The others rolled over in their groggy state, rubbing their eyes. Sitting up one of the crew men looked groggily at Eren before realizing who was standing there. He became alert with that realization and jumped out of bed. “Well look what we got here.” He kicked the bed of the sleeping crew member next to him causing him to wake up alone with the few others. “Our lil mermaid has legs.”

Another guy walked up behind Eren, standing very close. “And what do you think ye be doin boy.” He clamped his hands down in Eren’s shoulders, holding him there. “What should we do to em. He did come out of his safe spot, so it ain’t our fault.”

Another said, laughing. The one who woke up first looked over him with hungry eyes. “I say we have our fun while the Cap'n is sleepin.” He grabbed Eren and tossed him onto his bed. “Me first.”

Eren cursed his luck as the men started waking up, cringing as they spoke, glaring at any man he could see that wasn’t behind him. The situation wasn’t helped when his shifting left him without clothing. As the mermaid was tossed onto a bed, He snarled at the men. “Don’t you fucking touch me!” Eren said, trying to kick at the men, but since he was still getting used to his legs, his kicks were weak. “I swear to the Goddess I will kill you if you touch me!” He said, before trying to use his voice to stun them, but realized it didn’t work when he had his legs.

Levi was woken up by a loud banging on his door, he had just fallen asleep. Cursing at the person on the other side, he got out of bed and stomped over to it. “This better be fucking good.” He wasn't getting much sleep anyways but the lack thereof made him cranky.

Charles, the youngest of his crewmen and the only one that Levi thought had a sensible head on his shoulders, was standing on the other side of the door, staring up at him with a panicked expression. “Cap’n come quick! The others, they have the mermaid. They plan-”

Levi didn't even let him finish his sentence, he ran out of his cabin not bothering to get his shoes or shirt and marched down to the hold. He heard Charles yell after him that they were all in the crews quarters. ‘What the hell was he doing in there?’ he asked himself.

He barged into the crews quarters, infuriated by what he saw. Eren pinned down on a bed with Marion, an older crew member and one who frequently disobeys Levi, Standing over Eren with his pants undone. “What in the Bloody Fucking Hell is going on here!” He hollered.

The men around Eren all stiffened and looked at their now furious captain. They all stepped back away from Eren and Marion pulled up and fastened his trousers.

Levi turned to Charles, whom followed him down. “Stay with Eren.” Turning back to the men he picked up one of the pistol that was sitting on a crate and pointed it at Marion and yelled. “Marion, up on deck, Now.” Marion did as he was told, however trying to plead with Levi all the while.

After several moments, Levi returned back to the crews quarters without Marion. He pointed at a couple of men in the corner. “You two, get that tub and take it up to my quarters... NOW!” He yelled the last part when he noticed hesitation. He walked over to Eren and scooped him up in his arms and looked over the other men. “Rest now while you can, because you will not be getting any for a while.” He said angrily and carried Eren up to his quarters as they awaited the tub to be brought up.

Eren flinched at every shout Levi made, a glare still set on his face even though tears streaked his cheeks. When Levi went up on deck, the brunet stayed near Charles, waiting for Levi to return. He didn’t feel safe around these men. The mermaid looked up at hearing Levi’s return.

As the raven haired man picked him up, Eren wrapped his arms over Levi’s shoulders, hiding his face in his neck as he was carried up to Levi’s quarters. “I-I’m sorry. I..I was just wanting a single fish to eat.. I hadn’t eaten yet today. I’m sorry.” He said into Levi’s neck, his voice hoarse from trying to stun the men, having failed.

Levi walked them into his chambers and shut the door before setting Eren down on the small couch he had against the wall and threw a blanket over him to cover him up. He was still stunned at the fact that Eren had legs... Legs!

He needed to think, he looked down at Eren and asked. “I'm guessing you just eat raw fish right? I’ll go retrieve you one after they bring up your tub.” He was pacing about the cabin for several moments before sitting at his desk, leaning his elbows on the desk and head in his hands. “Why-how do you have legs?”

Eren tried thinking hard over the question, making sure he had his words right. He folded his hands in his lap, looking at Levi, hoping he wasn’t mad. “W-well.. Just like some fish have things that make them different, some mermaids can change their tails into legs. It’s rare, but it can be done by few.” The brunet explained, glad his voice was getting back to normal.

“At least now, you know I could have easily left but I was only trying to get a fish. I want to stay.” He said, hoping this proved his point to their previous talk before Eren tried getting some food.

Levi was still in a state of shock but it was starting to wear away the longer he stared at the boy. “So…”  From where the boy was, he was away from the stairs to go to the top deck to just walk away. He was just so flabbergasted right now, he had a man hanging over the side of deck by his feet and a mermaid with legs in his cabin. “You could have left any time if you had wanted…” He was more speaking to himself then to Eren. “Alright. My men are going to hate me for this but i really don’t care anymore after the stunt they pulled.”

There was a knocking at the door. Levi got up to open in and allowed his men to carry the tub into the cabin. “Put it over there against the wall.” He pointed to a empty space on the wall across from the couch. The two crew men sat it down and began filling it with buckets of water and left as soon as it was done.

When the door closed behind them, Levi picked up Eren and sat him down in the tub. “Don't move, I’ll go get you some fish.” He left and came back moments later with a fish and tossed it at Eren and went to go sit where Eren was previously residing on the couch.

While Levi had left after setting Eren back in the tub, the brunette groaned, figuring the other would expect him to have his tail back, but figured to save it so Levi could see for himself. He simply splashed some water to his neck and chest so he wouldn’t be too dried out when he did revert to having a tail.

When Levi came back, tossing the fish at him, Eren turned, shy about his eating in front of a human. Once he finished eating the fish, scales and all, he turned to face Levi again. “T-thanks for the fish. And again I am sorry for the trouble I caused. I didn’t mean to do that…” Eren said, trailing off before laying straight as he could in the tub, groaning as he bit his lip.

The mermaids tail started to reform, making Eren groan in pain. It always hurt more to reform his tail than it did to form legs.

Levi hadn’t know what Eren was doing at first when he laid down and started moaning. He got up and walked over to the boy and saw his face contorted in pain, looking down his body he saw that his legs were fusing together and scales were coming out of his skin… He had already thought he had seen everything, he didn’t think he would see a mermaid transformation.

He walked over to his locked liquor cabinet and poured him a glass of whiskey. However, after today, he needed more than just a glass of strong booze. He brought the booze  back over to the couch and stared at the boy. He wanted to say something but he was at a loss for words at that moment. He filled his glass again and downed it before deciding to ditch the glass on the table and drink from the bottle. Leaning back in the couch he closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose. “You can stay, you can travel with us and all that other shit… But under one condition… You are to stay by my side or in this cabin. Do not leave my eyesight unless you're swimming.” He took a swig of the bottle.

Eren gave a small sigh as his tail finished fusing, smiling as he heard Levi. “Understood. So then it’s a deal? That I search sunken ships for things you can sell for money and I can stay?” The brunet asked for clarification. He was glad that Levi was agreeing to the deal. It meant Eren could see more of the world and it made the boy smile.

“Yes, just don't make me regret this decision.” He said as he wiped a hand across his face. “The next port we stop at, I’ll have another tub made for you.” He figured that would make him happy. If he was going to be living on this ship, he might as well be comfortable.

Levi looked down at his now half empty bottle of whiskey and then to Eren. “Want some?” He wasn't sure if mermaids could drink but knowing how rough of a day both of them had, he thought he’d ask.”

Eren's face lit up at that and the mention of a bigger tub. He didn’t mind the tub, but it was too cramped for his tail. “That sounds like a good idea. I can get some stuff from ships to help you pay for it.” The brunet offered, knowing it might be very costly to have something like that made.

The mermaid looked at the bottle, moving in his tub so that he was closer to Levi, sniffing at the bottle, his face scrunching up a little. “It smells weird.. And you like it?” He asked, still curious about many human things. The brunette didn’t even know if he could drink anything other than water, but was curious to know if he could drink stuff like this too.

Holding the bottle, Making sure to keep it upright while he spoke, Eren tested how the bottle felt in his hands. “Well I don’t need anything too uhm.. what’s the word.. fancy? Yeah! Fancy. Just something simple but a little bigger than this.” The brunet said, looking at Levi with a grin.

The mermaid sniffed at the bottle again and shrugged, taking a big swig, gagging and coughing the liquid up. “Gah! Ack! H-how do humans drink this?!” The brunet asked, still coughing.

Levi chuckled at his response, it wasn't much more than he expected. “Its an acquired taste, the side effects are better than the taste, it's enough to look past the taste.” He grabbed the bottle from Eren and took another swig of it before handing it back over. “Wanna try again?” Levi wasn't a lightweight but he was already starting to feel a bit of the alcohol. “It might make you sleep easier. And don't worry, i'm not going to molest you in your sleep or anything.”

Eren blinked at that last part. “I know you won’t. Out of everyone on this ship, it’s you and Charles that I trust most.” He said before taking a much smaller sip of the whiskey, letting it sit for a moment, testing the taste out before swallowing it. He took another small sip before handing the bottle back to Levi. “It definitely tastes better in smaller amounts.” The brunet said with a chuckle.

“Yeah, no big swigs until you're used to it.” He said as he took a swig from the bottle.  He rested his head back against the tub and sighed. He had a feeling it was going to be a long night. “So, are your kind really as dangerous as they say?”  He asked, taking another swig and handing the bottle to Eren. “That you lure in sailors into the water to be taken to Davy Jones locker.”

The mermaid took another few sips, handing the bottle back to Levi. “No. Yes we use our voices to protect ourselves when not singing for fun, but defensively it's more for protection. Sirens are the ones who lure men away. They look like us, but up close are much scarier.” Eren said, leaning over the edge of the tub to look at the other as they talked.

He took a few more sips and shared the whiskey with Eren as they talked. Soon the bottle was empty and forgotten on the floor, Levi himself was past tipsy. As they talked, he was still stumped about Eren being able to form legs. “When your tail turned into legs.. Can you do that at will? What about that one they call the goddess, what was her name… Atar-something… Atargatis!”

Eren chuckled, now a little drunk from such low tolerance for the drink. “Y-yeah. I can change anytime I want. See?” He said, closing his eyes, face slightly contorting in pain as the scales receded and legs started to form. The brunet spoke as his legs formed. “And the Goddess? Her name is Atargatis. She was the first of our kind. She had been human once but in grief of her human lover's death, she tried drowning herself in the sea, but the gods thought her too beautiful to die so they made her live on as one in between land and sea and gave her a tail of scales. Now she is the one who protects the sea folk, merfolk and siren alike. Or if someone dies of grief or an emotion so strong of love, She turns them and their lover to a mated pair of merfolk. I’ve never met anyone who was made into one before, so it’s more of just a legend told to the young ones.” He explained.

“Oh look! See?” He said, standing from the tub, a little wobbly. “The Goddess is why some of us can do this!” He said excitedly, face red from the alcohol.

Levi stood up as he watched Eren stand in the tub with wobbly legs. “”Whoa boy, careful you are quite drunk.” He caught Eren as he tipped forward. “Goddamn, you are... Very naked, again.” He said looked down at him. “I take it you are not used to using legs.” Levi said as he helped steady Eren. “How long can you stay like this?” If he wanted to take Eren onto the port with him, he didn't want him drying up while in town.

Giggles bubbled from Eren's lips as he nodded, holding onto Levi’s arms. “Well I don’t have clothes, so of course I’m naked.” He said,flexing his toes as he stood, getting used to the feeling of legs again. “And once I’m out water with legs, I can have legs as long as I want. Even my gills recede and look like scars. See?” He said, tilting his head to show Levi his neck. The brunet didn’t give a damn that he was naked. It was normal for him.

He did notice the gills receded, he also noticed now that Eren was standing that the brat was taller then him by several inches... Just like the rest of his crew, he couldn't help but glare up at him.

“Well, then we are just going to have to get you clothes to wear when we go out on port, aren't we.” He made sure that Eren would be able to stand on his own before he sat down on the couch, he didn't stay sitting for long because that put him at eye level with the boys junk. Standing back up he picked up a blanket and tossed it at him. “For fucks sake, cover yourself or turn back into a mermaid, your distracting.” He started giggling himself, today started out so horrible and now he was talking to a walking mermaid, he may have finally gone crazy.

Eren chuckled, holding the blanket as he carefully stepped out of the tub, wrapping the blanket around his torso, making it look like some makeshift dress as he sat on the the edge of the tub. The brunet found it odd that the other felt his nakedness was an issue but didn’t question it. “I can’t turn back into a mermaid. I’m always a mermaid.. I just look human now.” Eren said with a small hiccup.

He hummed softly as he thought of something to ask. Once Eren had a question, the humming stopped. “So.. What do I do now? I know I’m to stay either in this room or by your side when not swimming, but what do I do when I’m in here or whatever?” He asked, wanting to know what to expect of living with Levi and his crew.

“Anything you want as long as it doesn’t make a mess. Maybe we can pick you up some bath toys so you can play in the water.” Levi said with a smile. He motioned to his chest in the corner next to the couch. “I have books, if you know how to read. Most of the time you will be with me so not having anything to do shouldn’t be a problem.” He let out a yawn, the events from the day mixed with the whiskey were starting to take its toll on him.

“Your taking the alcohol a lot better than i thought you would. But, I bet if i came over there and pushed you with a finger you would fall back into the tub.” He stood walked over to his bed and readied it for himself after flinging the covers of earlier. He sat down on the bed and looked over at Eren. “Stay like that or turn back into a fish, I don’t care. I’m getting some sleep and so should you.”

Eren gave him a curious look when he mentioned bath toys and books, not knowing what either of them were, but figured he could ask at a later time seeing as how Levi seemed to be tired and getting ready to sleep. He left the blanket on the couch before getting back into the tub, wincing as he let his tail reform.

Once back in his normal form, Eren leaned against the tubs side. “Okay.. Goodnight Levi.” With in minutes the brunet was fast asleep.

Later in the night, Eren dreamed of his mother, how it was when he was younger. Suddenly the dream turned horrid as he relived his mother's death in his dreams, crying out. His cries sounded like that of a whale or dolphin crying out as his tail thrashed about in the water of the tub.

Levi was awoken by an odd sound, like that of a whale in his cabin and splashing. He thought he was dreaming at first, that he wasn't completely awake because nothing was in his room. Then he remembered, there was a mermaid in a tub in his cabin. He sat up and slowly opens his eyes and groaned in displeasure from being woken up by such noises. “Eren...” He looked at the boy and saw him in an obvious state of discomfort, the noises coming from him and the splashing from his tail.

He quickly got out of bed to check on the boy, seeing that he was still asleep he assumed he was having a nightmare. He reached a hand out to shake the him. “Eren, wake up. Damn it, you brat you're making a mess.”

Eren woke with a start at being shaken, his body going still in the water. He blinked a couple of times as he looked up at Levi, tears coming from his eyes. Once he got his bearings of where he was and realized he was awake, his tears came down like rain from his eyes as he flung himself at Levi, arms wrapping around his torso, sobbing into his stomach, still sounding like a crying whale, though not as loud.

Levi was taken aback by Eren's expression, he was never in this situation and didn’t know what to do. When Eren wrapped his arms around Levi it almost knocked him over but he braced himself. “Eren, what’s wrong?” Eren doesn’t say a word to him, only cries. “Shh Eren, you’re okay, it was just a nightmare.” He says as he pats Eren, soon realizing that didn’t get him anywhere. Cursing to himself, he pried Eren's arms off of him and stepped into the tub. He sat down so that his back was up against the side of the tub and pulled Eren against him, trying to calm him down.

Eren curled against Levi, slightly shocked that Levi had gotten into the tub to try comforting him. “I-it felt so real.. I saw her..” His words caught in his throat with another sob as he buried his face into Levi’s chest. The mermaids body shook with each sob.

Levi wrapped his arms around Eren and cradled him against his chest, not sure of what else to do. He placed a hand on Eren's back and rubbed it up and down until he felt Eren's sobs subside. Soon he realized that the mermaid had fallen asleep on him and he was now stuck in the tub… “Fuck.”


	3. Punishments Dealt

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Levi awakens to find himself still in the tub with Eren, not very amused about being wet and cold with lack of sleep. It was time to deal with the crew, their punishments would be dealt out and lessons hopefully learned.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Eren written by SassyPastelEren  
> Levi written by RainValentine

Eren woke the next morning, a few hours after having fallen back asleep against Levi’s chest. With a groan he looked up, still shocked to find the other in the tub. “L-levi.. Wake up.. Y-you slept in the tub.” He said moving away from Levi, patting his shoulder gently, trying to wake him as he heard a knocking at the door.

Levi slowly woke up, he was very groggy and sore from such an uncomfortable sleeping position. He opened his eyes as he heard the knocking on the door. Cursing to himself he yelled, “someone better be sick or dying!” He knew he was going to be cranky today. The door slowly opened and Charles stepped in. “Cap'n sir, the crew is–” Charles didn’t finish the sentence, he was stunned by seeing his captain waking up in the mermaids tu. “I-im… Am I interrupting something?”

At hearing Charles’ question about possibly interrupting, Eren drew away from Levi, shaking his head. “No. It was just a long night and I had trouble sleeping and..” The brunet trailed off, trying to think of something that wouldn’t make Levi look bad, knowing even with humans, that people of power had reputations to uphold. “I kinda begged and pleaded for him to sleep with me, just for the night since it was my first night sleeping without family.” He said, telling a small truth to make it believable.

Standing up in the tub, he let out a very displeased groan. His pants were heavy with water and his skin was all pruney from several hours in the water. “Ah shit.” He stepped out of the tub and motioned for his bathing towel he had hanging in the corner. “hand me that, Charles.” He said as he started removing his own soaked clothes to change into some fresh clothes for the day.

“What is it, Charles.” He asked, taking the towel from the boy as it was handed to him.

“The crew is all awake and comin up deck. Thought you’d wanna know.” Charles knew that Levi was upset with his crew and punishment was going to start today, and Levi was going to work the men to the bone.

Levi was now fully dressed and ready for the day. “Thank you, Charles. I will be out momentarily.

After being dismissed, Charles when to leave but then saw the men outside and looked back at levi. “Umm, Cap’n. I think they are trying to pull up Marian.”

Eren looked away as Levi changed, remembering Levi’s issue with him being naked when he changed forms, but looked back when the two spoke. ‘Wasn’t that the guy from last night?’ The brunet thought to himself as he pulled himself up on the side of the tub. “Levi, do you want me to stay here or to follow you? It may take me some time to get used to my legs, so you can go deal with that while I get used to them, if you want me by your side today.” Eren said, looking at the two.

He cursed at Charles words as the body left. He looked over at Eren and thought for a moment and looked over at him. "Yes, you can come. It's up to you if you want to see the punishment dealt to the crew." He had finished dressing and walked over to the door, opening it, he could hear all the commotion outside. "I'll be back for you in a few moments." With that he stepped out and closed the door.

\-----

Levi saw all his men clustered together around the side of the deck, pulling up an unconscious Marian that they had not been given permission to do. Pulling his pistol out of his back pocket he cocked it as he walked up the stairs to the bridge. "You all must really want me to kill the man, don't you." He yelled as he looked over the railing at his crew. "You have not caught me on a good morning, I am not feeling the least be merciful."

One of his crew members thought it wise to yell back a comment. "Go back to yer fancy cabin and drink yer fancy tea water!" That remark earned him a bullet, sending his body falling limply to the floor. The rest of the crew looking down upon it and stepping back away from it.

"Anyone else have anything to say?" The crew was silent. "This is what is going to happen. You will finish pulling up Marian and take him down to the infirmary so that I can deal with him once he awakens. The rest of you will clean up this bloody mess." He turned to his first mate that was standing at the helm. "Take us to the nearest island, there should be a small one due east a few hundred meters.

"Aye aye, cap'n." Lucky his first mate was wise enough to keep his mouth shut, else he would be steering the ship right now.

He looked back over to the crew men and hollard. "Alright, now this is what's going to happen. Once you all are finished with that, you will all be cleaning this entire ship, Stern to Bow, Bilge to the Mast. If I see one spot at all that is unfinished or doesn't meet my expectations, the whole ship will be redone. Next, you will sort through and recount all the supplies. Do I make myself clear?" All he got were a few mutters of disapproval and loud curses. "If I hear any complaints or slacking off, the offenders will be joining Marian with his punishment."

The crew looked up at him shocked, but remained quiet this time. Levi looked over and hollard at Charles, "Charles, go make me some of my 'fancy tea water' and bring it to my cabin." He walked down the stairs and went to his cabin. When he reached his door, he looked back and saw that the men were still just standing there staring at him. "Did I stutter? Move, NOW!" He then opened the door and walked in, slamming it behind him.

In the time that Levi had been outside the cabin, Eren had formed his legs, wrapping the blanket from the couch around his waist as he used the wall to support himself as he walked back and forth in place to get used to walking. The brunet had heard the muffled yelling from outside the cabin as he walked and could tell Levi was getting angry.

Once he was more confident in his legs, Eren stepped away from the wall, walking over to the bookshelf as Levi came back in, flinching as he slammed the door behind him. “I-i take it they aren’t too pleased?” The mermaid asked, sitting on the couch, getting out of Levi’s way.

He lifted his head up from his hands and looked at the mermaid. “If I didn’t need them, I would have thrown them all overboard a long time ago.” He had never gotten along with the crew that he inherited from his uncle. They all thought of him still as Captain Kenny’s boy, that he was to weak and small to captain a ship. He thought he did a fine job, sure he’s made his mistakes, he’s only human. Looking over at Eren, he sighed. “We need to get you some clothes. I can’t have you walking around the ship wrapped in only a blanket.” standing up, he walked over to one of his chest and pulled out some of his clothes for Eren. “The trousers may be a bit small but the shirt should be okay. We will be arriving to a island soon that has a fishing village, we can get you some clothes then.”

Eren nodded, standing to follow Levi. “Okay.” He took the shirt and trousers, moving back to the couch, feeling how the fabric felt in his hands. The brunet had never touched dry fabric before as was amazed by how if felt in his hands. “This feels soft..” Eren said, trying to put the shirt on, but failing miserably, getting his arm stuck. With a sigh, he turned towards where Levi had last been. “I-if it wouldn’t be too much, mind helping me? I’m sorry, but I’ve never put on clothing before. I can figure out the trousers, but this is tricky for me.” He said with a small huff.

Levi sighed and walked up to Eren. “Here, let me see it.” He asked as he held his hand out for the shirt. When Eren handed it to him he placed it over his head and helped him bring his arms though the sleeves. The shirt wasn't a bad fit on him. a little more snug in the chest on him than it was on Levi. That was solved by just loosening the ties on the chest.

“There, now put the trousers on and tuck in the shirt.” He walked over to sit at his desk and opened his journal as Eren finished putting on his clothes. He had a lot to record before they arrived at the island.

Eren nodded as he tugged the trousers on. They were a bit snug once he had them buttoned with the shirt tucked in. He stood, walking to the mirror in the room, looking himself over. The brunet rose an eyebrow, smiling at how the trousers made his rear end look and was happy with the results of his first time wearing clothes, even if they felt just a tad bit constricting.  Eren then looked over at Levi, a small smile on his lips. “Thank you for lending me some of your clothing.”

Levi glanced up at Eren to see him in the clothing, he had to catch himself from staring at the mermaids ass. 'Damn it.' He cursed to himself. "It's no problem. It's better than you running around, naked teasing the crew."

The two of them hung around the cabin for a few hours until there was a knock on the door. "Come in." Levi hollard.

Charles opened the door and peaked his head inside. "Cap'n sir, we've arrived at the island."

Levi nodded in response. "Alright, have the men bring up Marion. we will be out in a moment."

Charles looked confused. "We sir?" He asked, looking from Levi to Eren. "Ye sure that's a good idea?"

"He will be fine Charles, trust me." He responded back, receiving a nod from Charles.  

Levi looked back at Eren. "Are you ready?"

Eren had spent most of his time letting Levi work as he looked at a few books from the book shelf. He couldn’t read, but the pictures were beautiful. The only time he’d interrupted Levis work was to ask what a certain picture was, that looked like a mermaid. The brunet got a good laugh, saying how they should have called it either a siren or harpie for how grotesque the mermaid was drawn.

Once Charles came in, telling them they had reached the port and Levi asked if he was ready, Eren gave him a nod and a grin of pointy teeth that he hadn’t had before. “Ready.”

Levi lead the way outside of the cabin to meet the rest of the crew on deck. The men stood in the middle of the deck, Marion was standing there among them, awake and nervous for his punishment. The men all backed away from him as Levi approached, Eren right behind him.

Levi stopped and turned to Eren motioning for him to move to the bridge to stand next to the first mate. "Up stairs, Eren." He ordered before walking up to Marion, stopping several feet in front of him.

"So, Marion. Did you have fun hanging around outside last night?" He walked over to the side of the deck and picked up some rope that was laying there and tossed it to one of the other men. "Tie his hands." The crew man moved to do as ordered, not wanting to anger Levi any more than they had. When Marion made a move away from the crew man, Levi pulled his pistol out of his trousers and pointed it at him. "Move and I'll shoot you right here." Marion stood still and let the man tie his hands, however looking none too pleased about it, muttering his displeasure.

Once Marion was all tied up, Levi grabbed his arm and walked him over to the opening in the railing on the side of the ship. "Now, how would you mind a swim, hum?" He then shoved Marion into the water. When he finally came back to the surface, Levi yelled down at him. "Good luck swimming to the shore with your hands tied. If you make it alive, you know, without drowning from your exhaustion, I'll let you back on board." He went to turn around but stopped and yelled back down at him. "Oh, yes. Try and climb aboard and I will shoot you." They were still a ways from shore, and it was very unlikely that Marion would make it there alive.

He turned back to the crew, looking over them. "Anyone else wish to join him?" He nodded in approval when they all muttered their answer. "Good."

He walked up to the bridge with Eren and his first mate and stood next to the railing, looking over the water. "Eren, what about you. Feel like a swim?" He turned his head to look at Eren. "This part of the island has a few sunken ships from storms and the rocks. Find something of use and we can see about getting you a bigger tub."

Eren had a smirk on his face, sharpened teeth still showing as he watched Marion's punishment from the bridge with the first mate and Charles. As Levi carried out the punishment, Eren turned to Charles, a genuine smile on his face. “Thank you.. for last night. For warning Levi.” He said, before turning as Levi joined them, looking over the railing with him.

“I can do that. But uh.. I’m going to need you to keep these clothes then.. I’ve heard gruesome tales of the few mermaids like me that changed with clothes on and it doesn’t end well.” He said, looking from Levi to the water, a longing look for the salty liquid beneath the ship.

Levi looked at Eren with a curious look before nodding. "Alright, hand them over." He motioned for Eren to go ahead and strip from his clothing. "Make sure to give Marion a scare while you're down there." He said with a chuckle and smirked.

As Levi spoke, Eren was already stripping down. Once he was naked again, he sat on the railing to hold himself as his tail reformed. “Hey.. I guess all this changing back and forth is starting to hurt less.” He said more to himself than anyone else. “Oh.. You can bet your sweet ass I will give him a good scare. Why do you think I’m in defensive mode?” He asked, grinning, showing the pointed teeth, and put his arms up in front of his face as if to block a hit, showing sharp spines protruding with translucent webbing between the spines.

The brunette grabbed a nearby net that was smaller than a fishing net. “Well, i will be back here in about an hour and a half. Leave a rope down so I can climb back up.” He said to Levi before pushing off the railing and diving into the water. Once he was under the water, he swam around the ship to where Marion was, he chuckled, sneaking up on the man. Singing in a haunting voice, the words undefinable.

Once Eren was right behind the man, He brushed his spines along his arms before swimming in front of him, the horror evident on Marion's face. He got up close, grinning, showing his teeth before thinking of something. After committing the mans face of horror in his mind, Eren gave an ungodly shriek, stunning the man into paralysis. With a simple push downward, Eren smiled as he watched the man starting to sink. There was no way he’d make it to shore, let alone make it there alive now.

Once he was done with his business with Marion, Eren swam off, coming out of his defense state, looking beautiful once again as he swam through about three sunken ships, collecting anything that shined brightly. The brunet also found a few things that looked like they wouldn’t be worth anything, simply because he wanted to decorate what would be his new tub.

An hour later, Eren was back on deck with his net of things for Levi.

"Set them down and let's see what we have to work with." He said. Kneeling next to the bag he began shuffling through the contents with Eren. Charles even came over to take a look. To see what Eren found and awed at a couple of the items.

Levi pulled out a couple of things and looked at Eren with a questioning look. "You have shells, a net, and a bottle of sand. You found these for yourself didn't you?" He took those things out of the bag and handed them to Eren and handed the rest of the goods to Charles. "Make sure to clean them when we go ashore will you." Standing back up he ruffled his hand in Eren's hair,messing it and his shell pins up a little. "Good job, kid."

Eren chuckled, holding his items he found for himself, grinning at Levi’s praise. “I got these for when I get my new tub.” The brunet said, a small blush forming on his cheeks but hid it as he made sure the net held the bottle of sand and shells before getting the clothes he’d taken off before his dive that Charles had brought back to him. The mermaid winced as he formed his legs again, getting dressed as soon as his legs were fully formed and turned to Levi. “I’ll go put my stuff back up by my tub before we go ashore.” He said, smiling.

“Go do that, we will be docking soon.” They were now making their way closer to shore to a large dock they had for large ships to stop at. As everything was prepared for their time on land, Levi spoke to the crew and made plans on when and who will be watching the ship as the others were on land. Every six to eight hours the person guarding the ship would switch with another.

Levi walked into the his cabin and saw the Mermaid messing with his new belongings. “Eren, It's time to go.” He said as he walked up to the boy. “We will first sell and trade what you found and a few of what we already have and we will get you some clothes then before looking into a tub.” Levi gathered a few of his belongings that he would be taking ashore with him. He turned after a moment and looked at Eren. “What would you think about a glass tub?”

A smile made it’s way to Eren's lips as he stood from the couch where he had been sitting after putting his new belonging by his tub as Levi said it was time to go. “Okay.” He said, following the other after he had gathered some stuff. There was a bounce in his step, but stopped turning back to look at the raven haired man at the mention of a glass tub. “Like..see through? That would be great!” The mermaid said with an excited tone, a grin clear as day on his face.

He wasn't going to admit it, but seeing the excited look on the mermaids face warmed him up inside. Shaking off that feeling he opened the door and led him outside.


	4. Yo Ho Ho And A Bottle Of Rum

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> With the punishments dealt, Levi, Eren and the crew go upon land for some shopping and relaxing. Things begin to get steamy while they are unwinding in the tavern.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoy this chapter, we added a bit of some nice LevixEren action in there for ya ;)
> 
> Eren written by SassyPastelEren  
> Levi written by RainValentine

Once upon land they had found a merchant that had purchased just about everything they had brought and gave a pretty penny for it, the rest they would try and trade or keep for next time. At the same merchant Levi was able to purchase Eren some better fitting clothing. He did admit to himself that the mermaid did look quite fine in the new clothes, the colors suited him well.

Once Eren had changed into the newer clothes they walked out heading to the glassmith, a couple of the crewmen in tow. "How do your new clothes feel?"

Eren looked like a child in a sweets store as he looked around the port as he walked with Levi after getting some new clothing, eyes wide and taking in everything he saw. As they made their way to the glassmith, Eren looked now at Levi as he spoke. “They feel amazing. And fit rather well. I really like them.” He said with a grin. The mermaid was excited to see what kind of tub he’d have now, glad that he’d gotten enough stuff from the sunken ships that it made them enough money to buy him one.

They walked into the glassmiths and talked to the smith about what they were looking for. The smith was quite confused about the request but as long as he was paid, he wouldn't question it. Levi and the smith spoke for several moments about what Levi was wanting, a couple of times he would look back at Eren to ask his opinion since he would be the one sleeping in it. Not that the glassmith would know that. All Levi told him was that it was going to be a clear bathtub.

The glasssmith put down his pen and took the payment from Levi. “Alright, Cap’n, I have yer tank ready for ya in two days. I’ll have it delivered to yer ship to.” With that  the two of them shook hands and Levi turned to leave.

Eren was beaming just at the description of his new tub. As they left, the brunet was now looking around as they walked, asking all sorts of questions about the different shops and street vendors. “Levi, what is that amazing smell?” The boy asked, softly sniffing the air, slightly wandering towards one of the many food vendors along the street.

Levi lifted his head and sniffed. “Oh, that? That is the turkey legs at the stand over there.” He said pointing over at the booth that was roasting turkey legs. It had been a while since they had eaten and was getting quite hungry himself. Grabbing Eren's arm, he pulled him off in the directions of the booth. “Come, I will get a couple for us.”

They walked up to the booth and the lady behind the table handed him and Eren over a leg each as Levi paid for it. Levi nodded his thanks as they walked away. Taking a bite of the meat he groaned as the delicious taste hit his tongue. “Fucking delicious.”

A small blush made its way to Eren's cheeks as Levi grabbed his arm, leading him to the stand. The brunet's eyes were wide with excitement as he saw all the food being sold and all the smells from the food as Levi paid. He looked over the food handed to him, taking a small sniff, trying to not look to out of place, before taking a small bite.

The mermaid gave a hum of appreciation before taking a bigger bite, chewing slowly to savor the new taste. “This tastes amazing!” Eren said in a happy voice as he ate, smiling all the while.

Levi noticed Eren's expression as he ate his turkey, happy that he could do that for the boy. Levi paused his eating for a moment, he had just realized that he always called the mermaid a boy, but he had no idea exactly how old he was. Looking over at the mermaid he asked. “How old are you, Eren?”  They had moved over to sit on some rocks that looked over the beach as they ate their turkey legs.

Eren turned to look at Levi at the question, swallowing the bite he’d just taken. “Oh. I’m twenty five. Why do you ask?” He asked, sitting next to Levi, smiling when he saw the beach and ocean. He never realized how pretty the ocean looked from the other side of it.

“I've just realized I always call you a boy but I never knew how old you were.” Levi continued to look him over, quite surprised about his age. “I would have thought you were younger than that.” Levi continued to eat his turkey leg and when he was done he threw the bone into the fire that had been started a short distance from them.

They sat there conversing for several moments when Levi stood up and turned back towards the town. “I don't know about you, but after today, I need to get a drink in me. I'm sure the rest of the crew is already doing that.” He then muttered to himself, “And I could sure use some company from a wench.” He looked down at Eren and held out his hand for him to grab a hold to help him up. “Come, let's head to the local tavern, we will be staying there tonight anyways.”

Eren had followed suit, throwing his bone into the fire, watching the flames spark for a moment. When offered Levi’s hand, Eren looked up at him, a smile on his face as he took the offered hand, standing up. The ravens words about wenches confused Eren a bit, but figured it would seem useless to question what he meant.

“Oh. Okay. Are the drinks going to be like that brown liquid in your cabin?” He asked, letting his curiosity run his mouth.

Levi let out a chuckle. "No, these aren't going to be as strong, so don't worry.” He made his way towards the tavern that they were going to stay at, Eren following close behind.

They walked inside of the tavern and Levi spotted a table for them to sit at. He was unfazed by the intimate acts going on inside, it was a usual occurrence during the evening all the way till morning. Tavern maids were bustling about serving drinks and food to their customers, while the tavern wenches were performing other “favors” for their customers.

Levi looked up at Eren, who looked slightly confused and patted him on the back as to reassure him everything was fine. As he ushered their way to the table as a wench made their way to Levi.

“Well, look what we got us here, Cap’n Levi.” She said slinging an arm around Levi's shoulders as he walked to the table and sat on his lap. He was only slightly known at this port, he had visited it several times with his crew. The wench motioned for a Tavern maid to bring the two of the men a tankard of ale. “So, who's this pretty boy ye got here with ye Cap’n?” She asked.

Levi wrapped an arm around the woman, looking over her a few times making sure to get a good look at her breasts that were practically shoved into his face and took the tankard of ale as it was handed to him. “Oh, this is Eren. A new crew member of mine, just joined a couple of days ago.”

Levi took a big gulp of the ale, drinking a few more tankards of ale as a the moments passed and became more handsy with the wench. Some of his men already getting down to business with their tavern wenches.

Eren took a few tentative sips of his ale, finding the taste a bit off, but not as bad as the drink from the previous night. The brunet saw how Levi eyed the woman in his lap, a small coil of jealousy making its way in his stomach. In the back of his mind a voice screamed that he wanted to be in the woman's place, but ignored it. He hid his look of minor disgust by taking another swig of his ale before greeting the woman. “Pleased to meet you ma’am.” He said, keeping a calm tone to his voice.

He ignored the sight next to him in favor of looking around the tavern. The mermaid saw other members of the crew being more handsy with other women. He noticed the women wearing interesting things on their legs and made a mental note to ask Levi about it later. For now, he had a better idea as he saw some of the other men kissing women.

Eren turned back to Levi and the wench, putting on a complete air of innocence. “Hey Levi, why are they eating their faces?” He asked in a whisper loud enough for him and the woman in his lap to hear.

Levi was surprised by the sudden question and about choked on the chug of ale he just took. Setting his tankard down he looked over at Eren. “They are not eating each others faces, they are kissing.”  He looked back at the wench and ran a hand up her bodice to her neck, cupping the back of her head and brought it down to him. “Here, I’ll show you.” He said and brought his lips to hers in deep wet kiss.

The wench leaned into the kiss, making sure Eren got a good look at their tongues rubbing together. After a moment she pulled away from Levi, giving him a smile and a playful smack on the shoulder. “You're such a dog, cap’n.”

The brunet had not expected that. For Levi to kiss the wench right in front of him, making the jealousy grow in him, but Eren didn’t let it show. He only made a small pout. “I can see what they’re doing and how they’re doing it. I wanna learn how to do it too.” He said, taking another drink of his ale.

Eren thought of something, knowing there was only a small chance that it would work in his favor. He knew exactly how to kiss since he and his friend Armin used to practice with each other when they were younger for when they found someone to be with. The mermaid turned to Levi again, keeping the air of innocence he had when he first brought up the subject. “C-can you teach me how to kiss, Levi?” He asked, making sure he kept his eyes big and innocent looking.

Levi looked over at him in shock. He didn't know what to say, let alone how to react. This mermaid that he had plucked out of the ocean only just the day before was asking him to kiss him. Granted they had gotten pretty close rather quickly, but it still didn't prepare him for that question. He opened his mouth to decline but the wench spoke first.

“Oh Common cap’n, teach the poor boy to kiss.” She ran a hand down Levi’s chest, pulling at the loose string that was to tie the chest of his shirt together. “ye can't just let ‘em go without knowin. How is he ever gonna please a lady.”

Before he had a chance to think about it, he grabbed Eren by the back of the neck and brought his face close to his. “You're a little shit.” With that he leaned in and touched his lips to his, gasping when he felt a slight shock when they touched.

A small gasp left the mermaids lips from surprise at feeling Levi’s lips on his, having not warned the other about the small bit of electric shock. Eren let  a hand rested on Levi’s shoulders and the other on his waist, slightly parting his lips. The brunette slowly deepened the kiss, hoping Levi didn’t mind.

As the two kissed, Eren cast a sideways glance at the wench, a small glare in his eyes as a way of telling her to back off and leave.

Levi leaned in closer to Eren, letting a small moan slip as he let his tongue slide against the mermaids. For some reason, he couldn't bring himself to let go of the boy and it confused him, it was like he couldn't get enough of him.

Removing his arm from around the waist of the tavern wench he paced it on Eren's hip and pulled him closer causing him to slid over on the bench. Shit, he was enjoying this to much, the little mermaid was a sneaky little brat, there was no way he hadn't known how to kiss when he was this good at it.

The tavern wench continued to watch the two men kiss but after she noticed them become a little more into the kiss and a glare from the younger boy she took that as her time to leave. Getting up from Levi’s lap she walked away without disturbing them.

A shiver went down Eren's spine as he heard Levi’s moan. The hand on the ravens shoulder made its way to the back of Levi’s neck, gently holding him as the mermaid was pulled closer. After seeing the woman had left, Eren let his eyes flutter shut at the feeling of Levi’s tongue against him, a small groan rumbling in his throat.

The kisses he’d shared with his friend had never felt like this and Eren enjoyed it. Occasional small sparks sent tiny jolts through both of their lips from the mermaid. He craved more of Levi’s taste as it lingered on his lips as he pulled away, dizzy from the kiss.

A small blush formed on the brunette's cheeks as he brought his hands back to his own lap, eyes downcast to his hands.

Levi sat back up straight and grabbed his tankard, downing the rest of the contents before raising it for a refill and was brought one promptly. “Shitty little sneaky brat, I didn't need to teach you, there is no way you didn't know how to kiss when you kiss like that.” He then noticed that his wench was gone and cursed. Glaring over at Eren, he took a large chug of his new tankard of ale.

He was quite confused, he was oddly turned on by what just happened and was sporting a very awkward semi hard-on that he was now trying to conceal by crossing his legs. He had never been with another man before, usually the only sexual urges he had were dealt with tavern wenches at port towns. He wasn't quite sure what to do with this feeling, he took another large chug of his ale to help him deal with his confusion and frustration.

Eren took a decent drink from his tankard, cheeks still red from the kiss. “I was just playing. I hadn’t really expected you to actually kiss me. I.. I’m sorry.” He said before finishing his ale and following Levi’s example, raising his glass for another, replaced just as quick as Levi’s had been.

After taking another sip, The brunet kept his head down, not knowing what to say now. He knew what he felt for the other, but didn’t mean to take his joke that far. He hoped Levi wasn’t to mad at him, but didn’t dare ask. Attraction to anyone, despite their gender, wasn’t uncommon with merfolk, but Eren forgot he was no longer with merfolk and things were different with humans.

He didn’t want to make things more awkward than they were, so he kept his legs crossed as he leaned over his lower half a bit, resting his elbow in the table, to hide his half hard erection.

About an hour and a few more tankards later, Levi had loosened up immensely and had forgiven Eren in his drunkenness. He was still sporting the semi hard-on and the wench was no longer giving him any attention much to his displeasure. Looking over at Eren, he gave him a long once over, admiring the boy's body in his new clothes. Trying not very hard to not get caught staring at the skin of his chest that was exposed from the opening of the shirt. He let out a loud sigh and looked back down at his tankard. His hard-on didn't seem to go anywhere and sitting next to the mermaid, looking up and down his body, just seemed to make it worse, but he just couldn't keep his eyes off of him.

Levi let out another loud sigh and moaned as he leaned up against the mermaids side, resting his chin on the boy's shoulder and glanced up at his face before glancing at his neck, which for some reason looked very delicious.

As the two drank, Eren found he was content to just listen to the noises of the tavern, talking casually with Levi as the two became more inebriated as they drank. The mermaid's gaze wandered to Levi on more than one occasion, eyes lingering over his frame. Now that the mermaid got the chance to look at Levi more, he found the man really was handsome.

Eren was zoned into listening some of the music that was being played by a few of the crew members, clapping along with some of the others when he felt a small weight on his shoulder. He turned his head to look, blushing when he saw Levi resting his head on his shoulder. “You alright there, Levi?” He asked.

Levi looked up at him with a sultry look. He brought a hand up to toy with the strings of Eren's shirt at his chest before fishing the fabric in his hand. "I will be if you kiss me again." He said as he brought his face closer to the boys.

The brunet swallowed hard, cheeks heating up. He could smell the ale on Levi’s breath as he had brought their faces closer. Eren almost gave it a second thought, but the alcohol in his system shut those thoughts down as he closed the distance, pressing his lips to the ravens in a searing kiss, hand abandoning his tankard on the table in favor of resting on Levi’s hip as he turned his body more towards the others.

“Oi! Look ‘ere boys. The cap’n is kissin’ ‘imself a mermaid!” Eren heard one of the crew members hollar, but opted to ignore it as he parted his lips, nipping at Levi’s bottom lip as if silently asking for entrance.

Levi let out a groan at Eren nipping at his lip and gladly parted them for the mermaid. Leaning into the kiss more, he brought his hand down from Eren's chest to his waist and then to his hips, pulling him up onto his lap as he kissed deeper.

He had all but forgotten about the crew and everyone else in the room and completely toned out their comments and shanties. As they kissed he wrapped an arm around Eren's waist and let the other caress the boy's thigh.

A small moan left Erens lips as he was pulled into Levi’s lap, straddling his hips. He let his arms drape over the others shoulders as he gently grinds his hips against the ravens, a surge of lust coiling in his stomach as they deepened the kiss.

Reaching around Eren he slid his hands down and cupped the boys ass as he ground against him, groaning loudly into the deepened kiss. Breaking the kiss he trailed his mouth down Erens neck, sucking and nipping down to his collarbone and back up. “E-Eren, we should head upstairs.” Levi half whispered and half moaned into his ear, the boys grinding driving him mad.

Moaning softly as Levi cupped his ass, Eren bared his neck more for the others lips as he nodded. “That sounds like a grand idea.” He said, grinding his hips against the others one last time, before pulling away, standing to let Levi stand and lead the way.

Levi stood up and grabbed the boys wrist, pulling him behind him towards the room that they were staying in for the next few days. Upon entering the room and closing and locking the door, Levi pushed the mermaid against the wall and smashed his lips back against the others.

Reaching his hands down, he tugged his shirt out from his trousers and pulled him close against him before shoving him towards the bed.

As he was shoved to the bed, Eren has gotten the hint and rid himself of his shirt, pulling Levi on top of himself as he laid back on the bed, reaching up to press a kiss to the pale expanse of Levi’s neck. His hands moved to cup the others ass, pulling his hips down to Erens, aching for more friction.

Levi ground up against Eren from between Erens legs, rubbing their now very hard erections against each other though their trousers. Leaning over he placed his lips at the mermaids ear and whispered. “You’re a fuck’n sexy mermaid, ya know that?” Levi continued to grind against the boy as he kissed down his neck, nipping and sucking as his hands roamed the boys chest, tweaking his nipples. “I'm gonna fuck you so hard.”

The moans that came out of the mermaids mouth were like music to his ears and made him burn. He trailed a hand down and gripped the boys hardened member through his pants and bit down on his shoulder.

A bright blush tinted Erens cheeks at Levi’s words and grinding. He let his head fall back against the bed as a moan escaped his lips as the others lips attacked his neck while his hands teased his hardening nubs. “Gods Levi!” He panted out, his hips bucking weakly against Levi’s.

A sharp moan left Eren as Levi gripped his member and bit his shoulder, feeling a wave of pleasure crash through him as he reached his limit, cumming in his trousers. With a shaky breath, he slowly came back to his senses, he noticed Levi’s hands and lips were slack against him. Hearing a faint snoring sound, the brunet turned to see Levi’s face and sure enough, the man was sound asleep. “Fuck. At least one of us got to finish though.” He said with a soft chuckle, not even daring to move.


	5. Why Is All The Rum Gone?!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Levi and Eren awaken after a drunken night together. Levi is still confused about his feelings towards Eren and his emotions are battling in his head.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Eren written by SassyPastelEren  
> Levi written by RainValentine
> 
> Please fallow us on tumblr :)  
> RainValentine is rainingvalentines  
> SassyPastelEren is sassy-pastel-eren
> 
> We apologize for the late chapter, things had come up, people were sick and holidays came. Hopefully the next chapter will be soon following.

The next morning, Levi awoke with a pounding headache. Rubbing a hand over his eyes he realized he was laying on something quite warm and smooth. Opening his eyes he realized his head was resting on not only a chest, but a man's chest. He tried not to panic when he realized that but then calmed down a little once he realized who he was sleeping with.

Eren currently had his arm wrapped around the man, holding him close. Levi gave the boy a shake. “Oi, brat! Care to explain this to me?” He demanded, trying to wake up the mermaid and sat up looking down at him.

Eren woke up, groaning, bringing a hand up to cover his eyes from the light streaming in from the windows. “Nngh. Explain what?” He said, before moving his hand for a moment, realizing the weight on his chest was Levi. His face went red at the sight as he sat up, moving his arms away from the other, trying to get out from under him. “I have no clue how we ended up sleeping like this. I swear.” He said, trying his hardest to remember the events of the night before.

Levi looked over him and then himself, noticing that they were still mostly dressed but Eren had several bite marks and bruises on his shoulder and neck. “Shit Eren, what did we do?”

Eren looked at himself, face growing hotter. “All i remember after you teaching me how to kiss is having a few more drinks then waking up to you telling me to wake up.” He said, crossing his legs, finding the front of his trousers were a bit stiff. “W-why are my trousers stiff?” He asked more to himself than anything.

“Tch, right, ‘teaching you to kiss,’ more like you being a sneaky little shit.” He said in regard to Erens kissing comment. He looked down at Erens pants to see what the boy was talking about. “For fucks sake boy, you came yourself!” Levi exclaimed, quite surprised at that fact. Levi sighed and leaned his forehead into his hand. “Well, we could do one of two things… We can either forget this ever happened, or we can address that we obviously have some kind of feelings for one another.”

Another wave of heat hit Eren at that. “N-no I didn’t! I don’t know what it is.” He half exclaimed. With a sigh, he moved on to the last thing Levi said. He knew he had found Levi attractive, but having feelings for him? He didn’t know just yet if that’s what he was experiencing in himself.

“Well.. I know I find you attractive, but I’ve never been so attracted to someone before that I actually kissed them.” The brunet explained. “Well.. not practice kissing.” He added, remembering that the other hadn’t found his little “teaching” excuse amusing.

“Tch, explanation will be left for another time.” Levi said as he turned on the bed and placed his feet on the floor, placing a hand over his groin, letting a wince slip out. Just his luck, he woke up with a bad case of blue-balls.

Standing up, he picked up Erens shirt that was laying on the floor and tossed it at the boy. “Go to the washroom and wash your trousers, fuckin disgusting.”

Eren nodded, deciding it was best to do as Levi had said. He stood, tugging his shirt on, heading for the door. “O-okay. Uhm.. Know that whatever we did, or were going to do, I’m sorry.” With that, the mermaid left the room. He remembered seeing some of the crew wondering towards the washroom the night before, finding it with ease. Once he was sure it was safe for him, Eren removed his trousers and found a small tub, filling it with water from a nearby cleaning pot that he saw others using, assuming they were washing their clothes and bodies as well, and got to washing his trousers, glad his shirt covered his lower extremities. 

\--------

Levi sat back down on the bed with a sigh after Eren left. Looking down at his groin, he sighed again and started undoing his trousers, hissing in pain as he pulled out his flaccid member. Giving it a few strokes it began to harden and was soon fully hard. He leaned back on the bed and started pumping himself as he cupped his balls, trying to rid himself of the pain. Due to his state, it didn't take long before he was cuming all over his stomach, groaning loudly.

 --------

With a groan, Eren gave up on figuring out how to get the stain from his trousers out. He felt a bit self conscious about returning to the room without pants, but saw some men doing just that. The mermaid sighed, wringing out his trousers and returning to the room.

When he shut the door, Eren turned, gasping at what he saw. Levi was laying on the bed  with white stuff on his stomach and hand with his trousers undone and his member out. The sight alone made Eren swallow hard, a heat rising to his cheeks. “I-i uh.. kind of needed help with the stain.” He started. “W-what’s that white stuff on you?” He asked from pure curiosity.

Levis eyes shot open at the sound of Eren reentering the room. He sat up quickly and grabbed a rag that was laying close by and started cleaning off his stomach and hand before putting himself back into his pants. “Tch, same Shit that's on your pants there, brat!” He was now a little pissy that his savoring of coming down from the high was interrupted.

Standing up, he grabbed at the boy's pants and walked out of the room, gesturing Eren to follow. “I’ll show you how once.” He muttered as they walked the hall back to the wash room. Entering the washroom he tried to ignore the hoops and hollers from a couple of his crew members that were in there, along with some other men. Walking over to a cleaning basin he began washing Erens pants. “Watch what I’m doin boy, I'm only showing you once.”

Eren realized that maybe him asking for help at that point in time was probably not the best idea he had. He followed Levi silently, ignoring the cat calls the men made at the two as the other washed his pants, watching intently. “Got it. A-and I’m sorry for being so much trouble.” He said in a soft voice so only Levi could hear.

Levi finished cleaning the garment and shoved the sopping wet trousers back to the boy. “Let it dry a little before you wear it.” He dumped the water out and poured some fresh water in the pot and began cleaning himself. “Just clean yourself off, I don't want you to start stinking up the cabin.”

A few moments passed as the two of them washed off and he could no longer ignore the calls coming from the other men in the room and turned to glare at them. “Keep it up and you all will be goin over plank.” He snarled at them. They continued to stare at him out of shock which still irritated Levi. Growling, grabbed the basin and threw it in the direction of the men and and walked out of the room, only to turn back and holler at Eren to get his ass over there.

\-------

A couple days later the tub was done and ready to haul up onto the ship at the Captain's command. Eren was trudging behind Levi as they walked with the men back to the ship with the tub. Levi was having a serious debate with himself to move the tub back into the storage room but then thought about the consequences that could have with the men and just decided to keep it in his cabin. The other tub had long since been hauled back into the storage room.

Eren had only spoken when need be in those few days till they were back on the ship, getting the new tub up to the cabin. He kept wondering what he could have done to make Levi act cold again. He wondered if the events at the tavern had merely been an effect of their drinking and it was the only reason Levi had shown him affection.

These thoughts tormented the mermaid as he helped fill his new tub. He figured it was best to leave the other alone for some time, using this time to use the items he had gotten for himself to fill the bottom of his tank. He poured in the sand first and then laid down the shells and net, making it look like his own private cove.

Once that was finished, Eren stripped down, folding his clothes and leaving them on the couch in the cabin before letting his tail reform and slipping into the water of his tank. He smiled at how big this tank was, now able to swim in small circles and not worry about hurting his tail or fluke.

Levi didn't return back to the cabin until after the sun had set. He had spent the whole day after they returned from dock surveying the cleaning of the decks and making sure his cook had what they needed to make their food for the trip until next port stop.

Not paying much attention to the mermaid lounging it his tub, he slumped down at his desk and opened his notebook, he had also taken log of what supplies were just purchased in town and need to make notes on what would be used when and what would be resold that way they could ration it all as efficiently and profitable as possible.

However, he was having a hard time concentrating, his mind kept wandering to the mermaid in his room. He did feel bad for being so cold to him, but damn it, he was so irritated with himself over the attraction that he just had to distance himself from the boy.

He still had a lot to get done when there was a knock at the door. “Come in.” Levi said in his now usual grumpy tone.”

The door opened and Charles poked his head through the door. “Dinner be done shortly Cap’in, ye want me to bring it up for ye?”

Levi nodded in response. “Yes.”

The cabin boy nodded and turned to Eren, closing the door and walking over to the boy. “And i can ready a fish for ye, Eren. However ye like it.” He smiled down at him and sat on the edge of his tub.

Eren knew he wasn’t able to give Levi much time alone with the tank in his cabin and the rules Levi had put into place so he had kept to himself in the tank, but popped up, hair dripping down the glass a bit as he crossed his arms over the edge of the tank as Charles came in. The boy looked like he was maybe in his mid teens, but Eren couldn’t be to sure on that seeing as humans aged differently than merfolk.

He offered the boy a soft smile at the mention of preparing a fish. “Oh, Just a raw fish, uncooked please. Thank you for offering.”

The boy perked up and smiled at Eren. “Great, I will bring it with Cap’ns meal when it's ready.” He looked over at Levi who was staring at his journal and rubbing his temples before leaning close to Eren and whispered in the other boys ear. “Cap’ns in one ‘is moods again, ain't he?” He sat back up after a nod from Eren. “Ah well anyway. Eren, do ye miss home? I never really had one. What’s it like?”

Eren gave a small frown at hearing that the boy hadn’t had a home. Sure he figured every human had a family but to hear that one if not some didn’t have homes now, it made him feel sorry for the boy in front of him. “I’m sorry to hear that Charles. And I guess you might not have the same idea of home as I do since my home was a reef. But it was nice. I had a few friends and they were very kind. Put up with a lot from me.” He said with a chuckle before continuing. “But it was a home I will always remember with more happy memories than sad, but I won’t lie. There were definitely some bad times.” He finished with a sigh, recalling that a bad memory was how he ended up on this ship not too many days ago.

“I bet it be pretty. My da’ was a fishermen and he took me out on his wee boat. That’s all i remember.” Charles gave Eren the story of how he and his dad became shipwrecked and when he was found by Kenny, the ship's original owner.

With all of the commotion in the room, Levi could barely concentrate on his work. He had been hoping for some peace and quiet but it didn't seam that was happening. Once mention of his uncle came up, Levi had had enough. “Bloody fucking hell, Charles! Can you not see I’m trying to work, your racket is driving me mad. You have a job to do, so get your bloody ass down below and help the cook!” He scolded.

Charles became very quiet after that. Standing up he nodded to Eren and Levi and made a quick apology and quickly exiting the cabin, closing the door softly behind him.

Levi let out a sigh, he didn't mean to be that harsh but he just wanted to think.

At Levi’s scolding and how hurt Charles looked as he left, Erens mouth was agape in shock. He quickly fixed his eyes on Levi, sending him a glare. “I understand you’re trying to think, but you could have been a little nicer to the poor boy.” Eren said as he lifted himself out of his tub, letting his legs form as he spoke. “It’s clear as day that Charles has a great respect for you.” He said with a small bite to his words as he stepped into his trousers and got dressed.

“Think on that the next time you want to snap at someone. The boy was just trying to make a friend since it seems no one else here will give the lad a chance. Don’t be so cruel.” Eren said before swiftly leaving the room, not giving Levi a chance to speak.


	6. Warming Up

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Levi just might be starting to warm up to his bratty little mermaid.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Eren written by SassyPastelEren  
> Levi written by RainValentine
> 
> So sorry with how long its taken to wright this chapter :( We both got new jobs so we are still working around each others times to get you more chapters. This chapter is a little short but i wanted to go ahead and give you something rather then making you wait a longer.   
> ENJOY1

Levi sat there dumbfounded for a moment. He couldn't believe that Eren just blew up at him, granted he did have a good reason, but that came from his Eren... Wait, his Eren? He couldn't think like that. He quickly shook off the shock and the thought of Eren being his out of his head and got up from his desk. He couldn't believe Eren would run off by himself, he knew how dangerous it was around the crew. 

Running out the door, he slammed it shut behind him. He had to find Eren before his crew decided to do something stupid again. He couldn't trust that they had learned their lesson after the incident with Marion.

He still didn't know what happened to Marion, for all he knew and hoped was that the poor soul drowned. He hadn't come back and Levi was more then happy about that fact. Marion was the ringleader to their deceitfulness and noticed it had calmed slightly after he was out of the picture.

Levi ran across the deck, not seeing him anywhere, he cursed. He could have either jumped over to take a swim in his anger or he went down to chase after Charles. Levi thought it would have been more of the second option that the mermaid would do, so Levi made his way down to the lower deck of the ship and to the galley where Charles should be working.

Of course he had to pass by over half his crew before reaching the galley, they were all sitting, eating their meals as he passed. “Aye there Cap’n, see ye finally came out of yer palace.” One of them snicked, which earned him a snarl from Levi.

Eren had made his way past the crew, ignoring the little whistles and calls at him as he found Charles who had kept his face down as he worked on preparing other meals. “C-charles, about the captain, I’m sorry he treated you that way. There was no need for him to treat you that way, stressed or not.” He said, resting a comforting hand on the boy's shoulder. His head whipped up when he heard the crew being a little louder than before, figuring Levi had left his cabin.

Levi walked up to the kitchen door, still ignoring the men's ridicule. Opening the door he stepped inside, walking up to the two boys standing next to the prep table.

Hearing him come in, they both turned and looked at him, Charles lowering his gaze to the floor after a second. “C-Cap’n.” He stuttered.

Levi walked up to the boy, placing a hand on his head. “Listen Charles, I didn't mean to come off cross with you. If anything I'm rather cross with myself.” He let out a long sigh. “Will you forgive me Charles?”

The boy took a moment before he responded, after a few moments he looked up at Levi and smiled. “Ey, Cap’n.”

“Good.” He ruffled the boy's hair before turning to Eren. “I need to speak with you... Alone.”

Eren had been silent the entire time Levi spoke to Charles, smiling softly at the boy to give him some reassurance. The brunet nearly jumped as Levi swiftly turned to him, his tone making Eren swallow thickly. “Y-yes Sir.. Lead the way.” He knew he’d probably be in trouble for running off on his own, but he’d never regret it. The boy had needed some form of comfort and he knew at the time no one else would have done it.

He moved so Levi could lead the way, still not trusting himself to wonder the entire ship alone, let alone wonder around with the crew still being untrustworthy.

Levi pulled Eren though the crowed of his men, trying to maneuver back up to his cabin. While walking through the corridor he changed his mind and pushed Eren into a space behind some cargo that was out of sight if someone were to walk by. He didn't trust himself in his cabin alone with the boy at the moment and this would help him keep under control.

Looking up at the boy, Levi scowled, “You know better then to run off by yourself on the ship. Do you want to get attacked again?” He was furious with Eren more so for leaving the cabin the way he did and shocked that he spoke to him in the way he had. “While you are on my ship you will not speak to me that way or I will have you scrubbing deck with the rest of them, are we understood.” He knew he was bluffing, he didn't have it in him to force him to do that.

The brunet gave a sigh as he nodded. “I’m sorry for the way I acted and spoke, but I still stand by what I had said. The boy obviously looks up to you and he is still practically a child. So please keep that in mind the next time your temper wants to get ahead of your tongue.” He said softly, crossing his arms over his chest as he leaned back against the wall. He knew speaking more on the subject was probably not the wisest thing to do at the moment but he needed to say something before he forgot.

“As for the implied punishment, I will keep that in mind as well before I let my mouth get ahead of me and try to hold my tongue better.” Eren said, looking away from Levi, down to his bare feet.

Levi reached up and cupped Eren's chin in his hand and pulled his face up to look at him. "You are a goddamned little shit.” Pulling his face down, Levi stood up on his toes a little and smashed his lips against Eren's. Damn it felt good to kiss him again.

The brunets breath hitched as he felt Levi’s lips on his own, a small noise of confusion mixed with pleasure escaped his throat. His hands gently rested on the man's hips as he slowly pulled away from the kiss, biting his lip. “W-why did you do that?” He asked, confused as to why Levi had decided to kiss him when he seemed to be mad at him.

Levi glared up at him for a brief moment. “Shut up for once and kiss me, brat.” He snarled and kissed him again, wrapping an arm around the boy's waist.

With a smirk, Eren kissed Levi back, fingers gripping into his hips harder. He trailed his hand up to the man's raven locks, gently curling his fingers into his hair.

Leaning in closer, Levi pushed him up harder against the wall as his hands snaked their way up his chest. He ran his tongue over the boy's lips as he deepened the kiss, letting his tongue slide against his.

After a moment, Levi withdrew, panting lightly and biting his lip. Damn the kid for being so captivating, he couldn't pull his eyes away from the boy's lips. Setting back down on his feet he backed up a few steps, giving Eren some room. “I have more work to get done, and I need time to think. Go back to the kitchen and help charles with his duties. Have him return you to my cabin when your done. Understood?” He tried to cover the hoarseness of his voice, but he knew he failed.

Eren's face was flushed as he dumbly nodded at the order, catching his breath a little. “U-understood Levi.” He said, not even ashamed of how out of breath he sounded as he maneuvered around Levi and headed back to the kitchen, quietly greeting Charles before asking what he needed help with.

Letting out a frustrated sigh, Levi made quick work of fixing his now hardened member in his trousers so that it was a little less uncomfortable. He was slightly irritated with himself on how easily that boy got him worked up.

Levi made his way back to his cabin, trying to think of things to get his mind off of the boy. He had work to do and couldn't let this distract him. Once arriving, he sat back at his desk and began working once again, only stopping every few minutes to look over at the empty tub where Eren slept.

After a while, he started feeling the waves of sleep start dragging at him. Eren wasn't back yet, there must have been quite a bit of work in the kitchen. He trusted that Charles would keep Eren out of any trouble. Soon enough, Levi lost the battle as he started drifting to sleep at his desk as he tried to finish his work.

A while later, Eren managed to be of use in the kitchen, following Charles’ instructions. Once everything was cleaned up and he ate his dinner, the brunet made his way back up to Levi’s cabin without incident from the crew. He was grateful that he got to be away from Levi for a bit, giving him time to think about what had happened before going to the kitchen.

Once he was back in the cabin, Eren noticed Levi was asleep at his desk. Chuckling to himself, he moved to gently pick the man up, finding it somewhat difficult since the other was a tad bit heavier than expected, but managed to carry him to his bed. He made sure to cover the other before stripping out of his own clothes, making sure they were neatly folded on the couch before getting into his tub, gasping a little at the temperature before letting his tail form. He knew he needed sleep, but was still restless over that kiss.

Levi turns over in his sleep after Eren left him there, letting out a small moan. “Eren...” He muttered, his back now facing the younger man. He was in a deep slumber that Eren's moving couldn't wake him from, his dream pleasant and obviously about the brunet man in the tub across the room.

The mumble of his name caught Eren's attention, making him look over at Levi’s sleeping form. A soft smile spread across his lips as he crossed his arms over the edge of his tub. He knew now that even as hard and cruel as Levi could be, the man did have a soft side. He just had a hard time showing it. Knowing this made Eren feel like he knew a side of Levi that very few ever saw.

Content with that knowledge, Eren let his eyes slide shut and he started to drift off into sleep.

 

\--------

 

A couple of days later, Levi was up and getting dressed as Eren was still swimming around in his tank, still groggy from sleep. There had been a bad storm the previous night and caused them both to get little sleep. Today was already looked to be a lot better and more clear than the day before, and hot. 

Levi was already starting to sweat from the day's heat and it was only early morning. “Im going above.” He said and looked towards the boy. “You can stay or follow.” he spoke with a still quite cool tone, even though he had lightened a bit towards him.

At Levi’s voice, Eren  broke the surface of the water of his tank with a sleepy smile. “I’ll follow you.” He said with a yawn. The brunet propped himself on the edge of the tank, letting his legs form. It was getting easier to do the more he did it.

Quickly putting on his trousers and grabbing his shirt, Eren gave Levi a nod before tugging on his shirt. “Ready Sir.” He said, clearly more awake now that he was up on his feet and moving.

Levi let out a sigh and walked to the door. “Alright, stay on deck where i can see you, no disappearing below. Charles should be out here swabbing the deck so you can help him out. I have to talk to the first mate.” He opened the door and moved to exit but then turned back to Eren. “If you’re good, I might let you go treasure diving if we find a good spot.” He said and walked out the door.

Smiling at the possibility to go back into the ocean, even if it was to dive for treasure, made Eren happy. “Understood.” He said, following Levi. Once out on deck, the mermaid made his way down to where Charles was, picking up a mob and grabbing his own bucket of sudsy water and started helping him clean the deck. As they cleaned, the brunet made idle conversation with the boy, both wearing smiles on their faces as they worked.


	7. Turn Loose The Mermaids

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this is going to be a short chapter but its a big part of the story so we decided to give it to you now instead of making you wait (and it was a perfect ending for a chapter.) We will try and have the next chapter out soon.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Eren written by SassyPastelEren  
> Levi written by RainValentine
> 
> Please feel free to follow us on tumblr :)  
> RainValentine is rainingvalentines/corporal--levi--ackerman  
> SassyPastelEren is sassy-pastel-eren

~~~~Levi went above to the quarterdeck to speak with his fist mate. The two of them walked around the Deck of the ship as they spoke about plans of going back ashore and places to dive. Levi had noted that there was a place near where a ship had sunk recently.

As they walked, Levi heard a bunch of laughing coming from the deck. Turning to look, he and his first mate noticed both Eren and Charles fooling around with the water and rags rather than actually cleaning the deck. The sight caused Levi’s eye to twitch with irritation, but he took a deep breath and shook his head.

The first mate looked back at the boys and then to Levi with a raised eyebrow. “Are you not going to do something about them, Cap’n.” Surprised his Captain wasn’t reprimanding the boys.

“No, they are still young and it's ungodly hot out today, let them have their fun.” He said and shrugged. As long as they weren’t causing any harm, he wasn’t going to stop them.  At least that was what he thought before a rag came flying and smacked him in the back of the head.

At the sound of a wet rag smacking something, both the merman and the boy gasped and were rooted in their place. Eren swallowed thickly as he and Charles stood up straight, trying to look as innocent as possible even though they knew it wouldn’t help.

Levi couldn't believe it when a wet rag smacked him in the back of the head. He slowly turned towards them, scowl on his face. “Eren... See me in my cabin... Now.” He said and turned around and walked to his cabin, leaving his first mate behind with Charles. Levi was fuming, he thought it would be fine if the two conversed together while they worked, but instead of working they were just fooling around.

Eren only gave a nod, staying silent as his head hung. He followed behind Levi to his cabin. Once inside, he closed the door behind them. “Levi, i’m sorry sir. That was an accident. We were cleaning and talking and I just don’t know how it happened.. It happened too fast.. None the less I’m sorry.” He said, hoping to give some explanation.

Levi leaned against his desk and crossed his arms over his chest. “I guess i can forgive you, but that doesn't mean that it can go unpunished... If you weren't playing with the water like a damn fish I would let you go dive." He had told Eren that if he was good then he could go diving later, this action wasn't exactly what Levi had in mind as “good.”

At Levi’s comparison of Eren to a fish, the brunet let out a short gasp before his stare hardened as he looked the other in the eye as he spoke. “Why do you do this? One moment you’re kissing me, the next you insult me. It’s making me so confused and I can’t take it anymore! Do you love me or not? “ He said, letting out an exasperated huff as he finished speaking.

Levi was a little taken aback by Eren's outburst. “I can't love you, you're a fish.” He realized his mistake soon after he said it when he saw Eren's reaction.

Hearing this hurt Eren more than he’d let on. With a hard sigh, he brunet fixed a glare at Levi. “Fine. If you think I’m just some common fish, then that’s what I’ll be.” He said, before calmly leaving the cabin, only to run after the door was shut. He made quick work of taking his clothes as his tail formed as he reached the bow of the ship and diving into the water before anyone could stop him.

Levi cursed loudly at himself when Eren shut the cabin door, he royally fucked up. He quickly followed after him as he ran out of the cabin and across the deck. “Eren!” He yelled after. Unfortunately he didn't make it on time, when he reached the bow of the ship, Eren had already dove into the water. “Goddamn it, Eren!” He yelled again as he looked over the railing into the water. He was pissed at himself, Eren had every right to be mad at him.

Letting out a sigh, he turned and leaned against the railing and noticed his crew staring at him with questioning looks. A few men turned back around and continued with what they were doing, shaking their heads all the while.

Levi’s first make walked up next to him and looked over. “Whatcha do ta make ‘em mad, cap’n?”

He let out frustrated groan and closed his eyes and tilted his head back. “I called him a fish...” He said, admitting to one of his his mistakes. He wasn't quite ready to admit his feelings for the boy. It almost didn't matter now, he wasn't sure if Eren would even come back after what he said.

Charles walked up and picked up Eren's clothes that were scattered over the bow of the ship. “He's gonna come back, right cap’n?”

“I don't know, Charles...” He said and made his way back to his cabin.

 

\----------

 

A couple of days had passed and there was no sign from Eren. The waves were strong, but the sky was clear, it was a beautiful day. Levi stood at the bow of the ship looking over, hoping to see some sign of the boy, hoping he would return even though doubt filled his mind.

Moments later, he heard Charles yell from the Stern of the ship. “Oi, cap’n! Ya gonna wanna see this!” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry not sorry


	8. Temporary Hiatus

Hello. This is SassyPastelEren(writer of Eren in this series). This is just to let mine and RaningValentine's readers know that we are currently not working on this story due to circumstances in our own personal lives, but felt we owed to our amazing readers to let them know. We do plan to continue Turn Loose The Mermaids once things have settled down a bit for both of us as we can plot more and write together. We thank you all so much for the support thus far and we promise to have plenty of goodies in store for you once we start writing again.


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